The dangers of the Ukraine border: looting, reselling humanitarian aid and the risk of child trafficking

The departure of Ukrainians to safe countries is becoming chronic. The flow of people does not stop and this leads to other collateral damage, such as looting, the reselling of humanitarian aid or the increased risk of human trafficking. This exodus is also marked by the high number of displaced children. The United Nations estimates that around one million. Many of them travel alone, which makes them easy targets for the mafias.

Various NGOs that are working on the ground warn it. The first to raise the alarm was Cáritas, whose volunteers told ‘El Periódico de España’ at the border in Dorhusk (Poland) that they had perceived some situations of homeless children upon arrival in Poland or claimed by people they did not know.

“Personnel from the Polish government were here on the third or fourth day trying to explain to the volunteers the risks to which the little ones are exposed. They emphasized that they had been informed of some cases of children traveling alone who had been picked up by unknown personswithout this being recorded in any arrival document at the reception center & rdquor ;.

It was told by Alexis Garea, a Caritas member who has participated daily in the Dorohusk humanitarian aid border contingent. He has also witnessed some suspicious situation. “Around here we have seen some strange cases; two children traveling alone with a mobile phoneand that they said they received calls from unknown people who offered them help to go with them & rdquor ;.

Another NGO such as Save the Children affects this same risk, which has warned this week that reports from the border suggest that some boys and girls “are arriving without family references after being sent by relatives who could not leave Ukraine, but they wanted their sons and daughters to be safe“.

“Others have been separated from their families in the chaos of fleeing their homes. Many of those who have arrived alone have less than 14 years old and show signs of emotional distress & rdquor ;, warn from the NGO.

The director of the entity for Eastern Europe, Irina Saghoyan, warned that in this situation “the risk of violence, exploitation, trafficking and abuse increases. Many of these separated children travel with their older siblings or their extended families. Others travel with neighbors or other adults. They need protection and support and they are still incredibly vulnerable”.

misunderstood solidarity

The director of International Cooperation of Save the Children in Spain, Vicente Raimundo, has been these days in some of the points of the device that the NGO has established on the border between Ukraine and Poland. He considers that although the situation at this time “is not worrying, it is true that in a troubled river, the most scoundrels seek to fish. And there childhood is always the most vulnerable & rdquor ;.

Raimundo emphasizes the importance of letting people who really know him work in this field: “I am referring to misunderstood solidarity. This conflict has unleashed a wave of empathy that sometimes means that the right decisions are not made, people who go from our country to pick up refugees at the border. And the important thing is not to cause a problem trying to solve another.”

Remember that “there are international protocols that must be respected, there are mechanisms. It is essential, for example, not break the family ties of those children& rdquor ;, and an uncontrolled arrival of people wanting to take refugees can generate an optimal breeding ground for mafias: “Among these people with good intentions, people who are not trustworthy can sneak in & rdquor ;.

two million refugees

For this, he says, it is important to have experts at the borders: “We have highly trained personnel to detect certain situations. For example, on the Melilla border. A man, a woman and two children pass asking for asylum. With a series of directed questions, pThey can identify if they really are family or if there is an abnormal situation & rdquor ;, concludes Vicente Raimundo.

The United Nations estimates in its latest reports that, of the two million refugees who have left Ukrainian territory so far, at least one million are boys and girls. These entities working on the ground believe that the real figure is significantly higher. They also agree that the provision of resources is essential.

“The Polish government put two girls here who were supposed to be in charge of that, of the control and reception of the children who were arriving. One 27 years old and another 31, who apparently did not have much experience in this type of thing. One of them spent the morning crying, They did not do a thorough check. If there are no resources for these things, these cases will go further & rdquor ;, illustrated the Argentine volunteer of Cáritas.

help resale

The risk of human trafficking increases and the picaresque with humanitarian aid also grows. The situation for many of those who have not managed (or have not wanted) to leave Ukraine starting to be desperate in some areas. Food is scarce and this has caused, according to these same border volunteers, that some begin to traffic with them.

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“People who collect free food here and resell it. They are letting many people cross the border who say they are going to bring humanitarian aid to those who have stayed behind. Many arrive and they do distribute them. In traffic queues or in towns. We know because they send us photos and videos of them doing it. But others don’t. We ask them and they don’t answer us & rdquor ;, explained Janna, another Polish volunteer from Caritas in Dorohusk.

“We also know that some of the SIM cards (for cell phones) that they were giving away on arrival are being sold in Ukraine. That has been told to us by people who have crossed later. From the first day they have provided free telephone cards on this side of the border, but apparently there are those who cross again and try to do business with them& rdquor ;, Alexis Garea points out.